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What do the experts advise is the best Trickle Charger for an R230 system battery (in trunk)?
This depends on the usage of the car. If like me you use the car once twice a week, there is no need for a charger. I have been in work situations where I leave my car at the airport for 3-4 weeks, never had any issues of starting. If you find you need to charge after a week or so, do not buy a trickle charger and spend the money and effort finding why your car is draining the battery? Buying a genuine Mercedes rear battery is a must, avoid after market batteries despite being brands as they just do not perform as good as the genuine Mercedes.
Yep, the CTEK is the way to go, and put the adapter on the battery so you have a quick connect to keep that battery up WHEN your system does not settle down for low current sleep mode. It WILL happen. So, if you don't use the car for some time, raise the trunk and clip it in.
Yep, the CTEK is the way to go, and put the adapter on the battery so you have a quick connect to keep that battery up WHEN your system does not settle down for low current sleep mode. It WILL happen. So, if you don't use the car for some time, raise the trunk and clip it in.
Is there a particular model number of CTEK that is appropriate for the R230?
I have a CTEK MXS 5.0, that one has AGM setting. Perfect for R230. I haven't even used mine in a couple years. As long as I can drive the car at least once a week it is fine. I wait till the rain is not happening and streets are dry. The car never goes out in the rain. neither does my Maserati, that one has not gotten wet in six years. LoL This summer we had a five minute squall, that was it, five minutes of rain and it was over, and no more for a month or two. It happened just as I was pulling in to the shop for the guys to replace my brake discs and pads, in late August. I asked for towels and was drying water off the car as the guys were taking the old brake parts off. They thought it was obsessive, although they work on some very high-end cars so they understand, LoL. "We've never before had a customer drying off his car while we were doing the brakes". They said, "It's only gonna get wet all over again". I said, "No, it's done raining." I was right, having looked at weather reports, it really was a five minute fluke. LoL
Just yesterday i pulled the car out for a drive, it had been parked ten days. Trunk battery was brand new a year ago exactly. Surprised to see "Consumers offline". I drove, literally, ten feet, when it went poof, and was back online again. It didn't take more than three minutes of engine running. That was nice
If we get snowed in for a week or more, I'll connect my CTEK, but not until then. I think, with my new BCM and all, I will first disconnect the trunk battery and then connect the battery tender, if I even need to use it this winter.
It's been 12 months since I bought the SL55, and 2400 miles, so it's time for an oil change this week. Whee!
NOCO Genius 2. It has an AGM setting if you have that type of battery.
~~~~The ONLY type of battery to put in the trunk of an R230, is an AGM type battery. When I bought my SL55 last year the trunk battery was "new", and I looked at it and saw it was NOT an AGM. I said, That's gotta go, take $275 off the price of the car. They said, What? I said, it may be new but it is the wrong type of battery. So they did, and I replaced it. First I tried to fit that other battery, since it was just two or three months old, into my Maserati but it was the wrong size, so I tried to give it to anyone who needed a new one, couldn't find any takers. So I traded it in, (core charge) and told the battery people this was a nice new perfect battery, maybe find someone you can sell it to or give it to for cheap. They said they would.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by tonylinc
... I will first disconnect the trunk battery and then connect the battery tender...
Actually, it's the trunk battery you want to have connected, or is that what you mean?
When I had my R230, I only connected to the trunk battery which stayed connected to the car. The starter battery is intended to only start the car and not keep electrical consumers powered.
Actually, it's the trunk battery you want to have connected, or is that what you mean?
When I had my R230, I only connected to the trunk battery which stayed connected to the car. The starter battery is intended to only start the car and not keep electrical consumers powered.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~That is correct, sir, the trunk battery is the only one that will ever need to have a trickle charger (battery tender) connected, if at all. That trunk battery is the one that takes care of literally everything on the car except for the starting of the engine.
Unless the rear battery is dead, like when the consumers offline comes on. Then the starter battery does everything. You can drive the car with a dead rear battery, but not with the dead front battery.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by cdk4219
Unless the rear battery is dead, like when the consumers offline comes on. Then the starter battery does everything. You can drive the car with a dead rear battery, but not with the dead front battery.
The starter battery will keep essential functions, like the alternator recharging the battery and transmission controller, going. But it will not keep all functions running or on-line.
08-02-2023, 06:50 PM
